About Scott Walker

Scott Walker grew up in a small Wisconsin town named Delavan. His father, Llew, was a pastor, and his mother, Pat, was a secretary and bookkeeper. His grandparents were farmers and machinists. From a young age, these mentors instilled in Scott the importance of service and the dignity of putting in a hard day’s work.

Scott’s first job was washing dishes at the Countryside Restaurant. Later, he flipped hamburgers at McDonald’s. No matter the job, Scott always carried with him the work ethic modeled for him in his youth.

In school, he was active in sports, band, and church, and achieved the rank of Eagle Scout. It was in 1985 that Scott’s eyes were opened to public service after he was selected to attend the American Legion’s Badger Boys State program. It was there that he learned the virtues of American government and the importance of freedom. Scott thrived at Badger Boys State and was selected out of hundreds of young, aspiring men to be one of two representatives from Wisconsin to Boys Nation in Washington, D.C.

Scott went on to attend Marquette University in Milwaukee. While in school, he worked for IBM before leaving his senior year to take an opportunity to work full-time in finance and development for the American Red Cross.

In 1993, Scott was elected to the Wisconsin State Assembly. Then, in 2002, he became the first Republican elected Milwaukee County Executive. Voters in the overwhelmingly Democrat county re-elected Scott by increased margins in 2004 and 2008 because he kept his promises to continuously reform county government and put taxpayers first.

On January 3, 2011, Scott Walker was inaugurated as the 45th Governor of Wisconsin. One of his first reforms, Act 10, helped eliminate the state’s $3.6 billion budget deficit without raising taxes or cutting health care for those in need. It gave schools and local governments the tools to balance budgets without the massive layoffs seen in other states. So far, the reforms have saved taxpayers some $5 billion.

On June 5, 2012, Scott Walker became the first Governor in American history to survive a recall election. He received both more votes and a higher percentage of the vote than in his 2010 election, proving again that Wisconsinites want leaders in office who keep their promises.

On November 4, 2014, Scott was re-elected to a second term.

Working together with a reform-minded Legislature, Scott has achieved bold budget reforms, cut taxes by some $8 billion, made record investments in our K-12 classrooms, frozen UW tuition six years in a row, and helped make Wisconsin a Top 10 state for business for the first time ever. He continues to fight for more bold reform to keep moving Wisconsin forward, and to create greater freedom and prosperity for hard-working families.

Scott and his wife, Tonette, have two sons – Matt, who works in digital media in Milwaukee, and Alex who works as a political organizer in Wisconsin politics. In addition to working for the American Lung Association, Tonette leads several initiatives including Fostering Futures, which aims to make Wisconsin a leader in Trauma Informed Care. The Walker family is active in church and several charitable programs.

Scott loves riding his 2003 Harley-Davidson Road King on winding roads, adding steps on his Fitbit by running and walking around the state, and visiting Wisconsin supper clubs with family and friends. He is thankful for God’s abundant grace.